This invention relates to engines, and more particularly to a Rotary internal combustion engine which allows for the complete treatment of the combusted gases, greater efficiency of the gas cycle and cleaner exhaust than present day engines.
Prior art rotary internal combustion engines are described, for example, in the following U.S. Pat. Nos.: 3,165,093 to Etxegoien; 3,181,510 to Hovey; 3,572,985 to Runge; 3,976,037 to Hojnowski; 4,077,366 to Hideg et al.; 4,096,828 to Satou et al.; 4,848,296 to Lopez; 4,926,816 to Kita et al.; 5,251,596 to Westland et al.; and 5,310,325 to Gulyash.
By the present invention, there is provided a rotary internal combustion engine having an engine block with a hollow interior in the shape of two overlapping cylinders. A flywheel occupies the lower cylindrical cavity of the engine block interior and has an internal bore which defines a cylindrical compression chamber. The flywheel is rotatable about the longitudinal axis of the lower cylindrical cavity. The outer surface of the flywheel and the interior surface of the upper cylindrical cavity define a crescent shaped expansion chamber.
Power packs rotate about a stationary power shaft extending through the flywheel along the longitudinal axis of the upper cylindrical cavity of the engine block interior. The power packs intermesh with the flywheel such that rotation of the power packs about the shaft results in rotation of the flywheel. As the power packs rotate past an intake opening, combustion materials are vacuumed into the cylindrical chamber to be compressed.
As the power packs rotate further about the power shaft, the combustion materials are ultimately compressed into a cross-fire combustion chamber within each power pack before being ignited by a spark plug positioned in an injection opening in the engine block. The resulting release of power into the expansion chamber from the explosion in the combustion chamber propels the power packs through the expansion chamber, thereby rotating the flywheel which then rotates a drive shaft held in communication with the flywheel. Further treatment of the combustion materials is optionally provided through additional injection openings in the engine block. Such treatment may include, for example, fuel injection, water injection, additional sparking, and clean air injection. The spent gases finally exit the expansion chamber and may then enter a turbine employed to extract further power from the highly exploded gases to rotate the drive shaft. The complete treatment of the combusted gases allows the engine to produce relatively pollutant-free exhaust.